FFVII  The Novel
by english-crumpet
Summary: A detailed and faithful adaptation of the original game. Never written any fan fiction before but if you love the original video game like me then I'm sure you'll enjoy it. Feedback appreciated. Plenty more to come!
1. Prologue

PROLOGUE

Amidst the suffocating blackness of a city in torment, a young girl in a pink button down dress stood alone on a deserted street. In her hair, light brown in colour and tied back in a long plait which ran the length of her slender back, she wore a matching pink bow which fluttered wildly in a sudden breeze that whipped past her soft skin, passing as quickly as it arrived. Hooked on her arm she carried a wicker basket, and inside it her delicate hand—with skin as white as a china doll—touched an array of exquisite wild flowers. She is a special woman, for anyone who can sustain the life of such flowers in the dark, putrid slums beneath Midgar city must surely be gifted.

Looking up, her wide green eyes—about which so many of the young men in her slum have dreamt about—see not sky and stars but the base of the real Midgar. High above, suspended on huge pillars, the floating city houses the lives of the rich and privileged, while beneath the poor and the outcast rot in the debris left by the decadence of those above; living off crumbs that occasionally trickle down from that distant world. Down below the areas don't even have names, they have numbers; slums labelled Sectors 1-8. Some of them lay in ruin, while others thrive through trade, violence and scandal. It was a dangerous and seedy world that was near impossible to escape, no matter how determined the inhabitants might be.

Feeling tears begin to burn those emerald eyes at the injustice of her world, the flower girl quickly reprimanded herself for allowing her emotions to so easily creep up on her. Normally she prided herself on her strength of character and willpower in the face of such hardships, and instinctively, still annoyed at her momentary showing of weakness, she moved her hand from the flowers to a gold bangle on her wrist. It wasn't a particularly special looking piece of jewellery; in fact it was rather cumbersome but hidden in its underside were set two incredible white orbs. They glinted as if emitting their own light, and inside them the cloudy glow swirled rather like smoke in water. She touched the orbs faintly with just the tips of her fingers, again without thinking, and felt immediately calm, as if everything, no matter how dire things had become or would become in the future, would surely be put right before she moved on from this world.

The never-ending sounds and rancid smells of Lower Midgar had lessened during this mysterious respite, however out of nowhere it seemed, a train began to rumble in the distance. Its whistle pierced the air as it continued to thunder along the tracks, rumbling monotonously on and on.

The flower girl, woken from her momentary daze, took a few seconds to realise that she was far from any train line. She knew these slums better than most having spent much of her childhood exploring their myriad hiding spots and shortcuts, and yet louder and louder still she could hear the train rumbling onwards. Again its high-pitched whistle sounded and it seemed now that the train must surely be right on top of her. The flower girl covered her ears, dropping her basket of flowers which scattered sadly across the dirty ground, but still the train could be heard, perhaps even clearer than before. Was it her imagination? She had never previously experienced anything like this and the confusion was beginning to frighten her.

Her hands still covering her ears and the train still noisily following its course, the beautiful flower girl fled.


	2. Chapter 1: Mercenary For Hire

CHAPTER 1 – Mercenary For Hire

Standing in the doorway of the speeding train, Cloud Strife, ex-SOLDIER First Class, now mercenary for hire, peered out at the dark city flying quickly past him. It was a far cry from the splendour of the mountains at his hometown of Nibelheim, a place which now held little more than bitter memories and ghosts of a former life. Yet he seemed to find solace in the ugliness and hopelessness of Midgar, it seemed somehow amusing the way the rich so easily disregarded the lives of the poor with little care for either the world below them or the world at large, which was steadily fading due to their accelerated use of Mako, a natural energy source found deep in the earth.

Beginning to feel dizzy from the vibrations of the train he turned from the window, but not before catching a glimpse of his reflection in the scratched glass. Even through the heavy scratches he could still see clearly his bright blue eyes, glowing in the way that only those who have been subjected to high amounts of Mako do. It bothered him, his time in SOLDIER had branded him in a way that meant everyone he ever encountered would know of his past, and he quickly turned towards his new teammates.

They called themselves Avalanche, an amateur band of freedom fighters who fought against everything that his former employers SOLDIER stood for. There were four of them. A small but muscular guy wearing a red bandana and an eye patch; despite his small size Cloud could see that he was clearly agile and most likely very speedy in a fight. Next to him stood a man who seemed to be the first guy's complete opposite; overweight and sweating profusely, due to nerves Cloud guessed since it was a cool night out, he had done nothing the entire train ride except pace up and down centre aisle and mutter quietly under his breath. Many would have found such a sight unnerving, Cloud found it incredibly annoying. Next up was the only female of the group, her name was Jessie or Josie or something like that, she was clumsy but clearly the brains behind the operation as she was the one who had managed to get them on this 'upper-world only' train, thanks to a set of impressive fake electronic passes she'd created. Finally, sitting half way along the carriage and repeatedly looking at Cloud out of the corner of his eye was the group's leader. He was a huge man, with shiny black eyes and a mouth filled with gold teeth, however his impressive grill was a mere distraction from the fact that his left arm had been replaced from the elbow down by a gatling gun. He sat with it in his lap, and even Cloud who was well experienced in both battle and interesting characters, had to admit that he had never seen anything quite like it before.

He continued to watch his new teammates, wondering when their leader, Barret was his name, would brief him on the mission. This one was strictly business. Cloud didn't give a damn about saving the planet or any of the other anti-Shinra crap that Avalanche stood for. He was in this for the money and nothing else. Whether or not Barret would come up good for the 2000 gil he had promised upon hiring Cloud, he wasn't sure, but if it failed to materialise after the mission, Cloud would make sure Barret lived to regret it.

At last the train had reached its destination. The small guy with the eye patch left the carriage first. Watching from the window Cloud saw him swiftly take out one of the guards on the platform, the girl Jessie followed him and took out a second.

"Impressive." Cloud thought to himself. Having seen her practically trip over her own feet when getting onto the train, he was not expecting to see her take out a trained Shinra guard so easily upon getting off. Perhaps this little group of misfits was more accomplished than he first though. With the coast clear the fat guy followed the others up the platform and Cloud felt Barret push him roughly from the carriage.

"C'mon newcomer, follow me!" he bellowed over the buzz of the train which was just starting to move away from the station. Before following, Cloud took a moment to take in his surroundings. They were unfamiliar but despite not knowing their exact location, there was no question that whatever they were about to do, it would be taking place inside the Sector 1 Mako Reactor.

At a run he made his way up the platform in pursuit of the rest of the team. However before making it even half way he was ambushed by two more guards. Instinctively he grabbed for the enormous sword that he carried at all times on his back. Nicknamed Braver, the sword was almost as big as Cloud, who himself was over six foot. His shoulders were broad so as to carry the weight of the hefty weapon, although his frame was slim for one so experienced in combat. That said there wasn't a single ounce of fat on his body, but instead he was entirely muscle, providing him with a deadly combination of strength, speed, and agility, as well as a level of cunning rarely seen in one so young. His face was pointed but handsome—he had his fair share of female admirers—and youth was still on his side. Perhaps most notable about his appearance was his hair, which was bright blonde and stood in long spikes that despite growing in a completely messed up manner, looked as if he had spent a great amount of time making them look like that, which of course he had not.

The guards took little effort to dispatch. Each one fell at a single blow from Cloud's Braver and neither managed to inflict any real damage to him. Before he knew it the battle was won and he had rejoined the rest of the team at the entrance to the outer grounds of the Mako reactor.

Jessie was on her knees, crouched over some kind of electronic device she'd hooked up to the thick metal doors barring their way into the reactor grounds. Worried that they might be noticed, Cloud looked up to see that Barret's gun arm had apparently taken care of both CCTV cameras which were now hanging off the wall by their wires, smashed open by a barrage of bullets.

The guy with the eye patch spoke, "You handled yourself pretty well just then, didn't catch your name…"

"Cloud." Cloud responded sounding quite uninterested.

"It's pretty cool having an ex-SOLDIER like you on the team." Eye-patch said through a grin, "I'm Biggs, and this is Wedge, and Jess-"

But Cloud interrupted him, "I don't care what your names are. Once this job's over, I'm out of here."

Biggs scowled and looked ready to jump Cloud when Barret appeared from behind them, looking as angry as Biggs.

"What the hell are you doing? I thought I told you never to travel in groups!" Biggs backed away and Jessie stood up from her console. The huge doors parted, revealing the way into the reactor. "Our target's the North Mako Reactor, meet on the bridge in front of it. Now scatter!"

Still looking affronted Biggs turned quickly and in one fluid motion, leaped over a wall inside the compound and was gone just as Jessie packed up her equipment and followed suit. Likewise Wedge made a run for the now open doorway, he was still sweating like a pig as his rolls of fat wobbled with every step.

Barret, his dark skin making him difficult to see in the night despite his size, turned to Cloud and with a look of intermingling curiosity and suspicion said, "Ex-SOLDIER, huh? Don't trust ya!" At this he too turned towards the towering reactor and was quickly gone, hidden in the shadows.

Not for the first time, Cloud felt a sense of foreboding about this mission. Since leaving SOLDIER he had worked a number of mercenary jobs, but none had been on as large a scale as this. Yet despite the danger that was clearly involved in the mission, he was still in the dark about what he was expected to do. Barret had given no briefing, no information whatsoever.

Looking up one last time before entering the compound, Cloud took in the sight of the great reactor before him, it was the ultimate image of how technology had advanced in their world. If Barret planned on somehow destroying the reactor, one of the eight that sat around the edge of the circular city, upper-Midgar would be truly shaken, as its reliance on the reactors to provide Mako energy to its inhabitants was fundamental to its existence. It would also make Cloud, as well as the rest of the team, a public enemy and fugitive. Was it really worth the risk?

Shaking his head in an effort to dispel such thoughts from his mind, Cloud reminded himself that he lived by a rule of 'no regrets' and always had done. Plus he was true to his word, and he had promised to help Avalanche regardless of the consequences, so that's exactly what he'd do.

Moving a hand to the hilt of his sword, which of course lay strapped faithfully to his back, Cloud stepped into the shadows; there was no turning back now.

The passage into the reactor was a straightforward affair. This time he had the upper hand and managed to stealthily ambush a number of guards without drawing unwanted attention to himself. By the time he reached the bridge, the rest of the team was already there. Wedge stood at the nearest doorway, apparently this was to be his station for the remainder of the mission as it would later serve as their escape route. Thus Wedge was to guard it, although quite what he would do if he did run into trouble Cloud wasn't sure, he looked to be completely useless in any type of combat situation. He could always sit on the bad guys, Cloud thought with a snigger.

Once Cloud joined the rest of the team they made their way swiftly through a series of small rooms, each one blocked by a locked door that Jessie expertly managed to decipher codes to open. Like Wedge before him, Biggs stopped at a certain point and remained as a guard, leaving Cloud, Barret and Jessie to head deep into the reactor's core via an elevator.

Barret took the opportunity to finally shed some light on the mission.

"Reactors like this are sucking the life force out of the planet, without Mako our whole world will die." He explained angrily, spitting on certain words.

Cloud shrugged his shoulders, he wanted a briefing not a lecture.

"Don't you care that the planet will be destroyed if nobody does anything about what Shinra is doing?" Barret continued, the veins in his muscular neck protruding dangerously.

Cloud shrugged again, and looked at Jessie who had a concerned but curious look on her face. His former employee was Shinra, as a member of SOLDIER he was expected to fight to protect the goals of Shinra, the political and military body that ruled over Midgar, and was quickly making its presence known across the whole globe. At its head sat the President himself, and below him his son Rufus. Beneath these two come a whole team of ministers, each one more corrupt than the last, power hungry and damn-near evil.

The elevator stopped, and Barret, evidently troubled by Cloud's lack of interest in his freedom-fighting goals, stepped out into the reactor core. However there was a long way to travel yet. Down stairways, across pipes, up ladders, through various smoky chambers, the trio moved onwards. Jessie, just like her teammates before her, kept watch at a certain point not too far from their final destination.

It was clear to Cloud now that they were nearing the nucleus of the reactor. The sharp, acidic smell of Mako was stronger than ever, and was making Barret's eyes water. Cloud on the other hand was undisturbed by it due to the exposure he had undergone during his training in SOLDIER. However if this was the biggest thing they had to worry about, they really couldn't complain. The whole mission had gone disturbingly smoothly so far.

Cloud tried to dispel any notion that danger could be lurking just around the corner and followed Barret across a long platform about the width of a single-lane road, with just a thin railing stopping them from falling more than a hundred feet to the reactor base below. It led to some form of incinerator and standing before it, Cloud could see that this must be the heart of the reactor. Barret knew it too. This was their destination.

Cloud's heart sank, for at that moment Barret pulled a compact yet extremely amateur looking makeshift bomb from inside a hidden pocket in the lining of his jacket, and thrusting it into Cloud's hands he ordered, "Wire it up, Cloud."

So the mission was to destroy the reactor after all. Cloud cursed his naivety; what else could it ever have really been? He should have faced the facts from the moment they had gotten off the train, at least then he could have prepared himself a little for what he was about to do.

No regrets, he reminded himself, as he hesitated with the explosives sitting menacingly in his hands. There could be no denying the sense of foreboding in Cloud's mind now. If he were to go ahead with this act, he would be setting himself up for life as a fugitive on the run from the biggest corporate and military entity on the entire planet. His head began to pound, and he instinctively set his jaw and began to grind his teeth. Barret snapped him out of it.

"What the hell you doin'? Get a damn move on!" he yelled.

Cloud nodded and seeing no other option at this point, set to work hooking up the explosives to the incinerator. Luckily he had some experience with detonators, but why Barret hadn't gotten Jessie to do this was beyond him. Setting the timer for 10 minutes until detonation, he stood back from the bomb just in time to hear an alarm sound.

"Damn!" Barret cried. "This better not be Wedge messing up again!"

But before either man could make a move to escape they heard a loud crash at the opposite end of the platform. In the distance, not just moving but scuttling rapidly towards them was some sort of gigantic robot scorpion.

"Damn!" Barret cried again, his mouth hanging open and eyes wide in horror.

This was exactly what Cloud had been afraid of. At least now they knew what Shinra had been spending taxpayers' money on that clearly wasn't going towards redeveloping Lower Midgar, they were building enormous electronic scorpions!

It reached them in a matter of seconds. Cloud had just enough time to draw his Braver before Barret, who had clearly gotten over his initial shock, was pelting bullets at the monster in an attempt to slow down its assault.

It worked and the scorpion was momentarily caught by surprise. Cloud thought back to his SOLDIER training and noticing that the monster was robotic, figured it would most likely be susceptible to electrical attacks. Although by no means a mage and much more an advocator of melee fighting, Cloud knew the advantages that could be gained from utilising the elements through magic. Thus he hit the beast with an impressive bolt of lightning and to his great relief it seemed to do a decent amount of damage. The scorpion recoiled in pain, rising onto its back legs allowing Cloud to follow up with a hard strike to its belly with his sword. Barret followed suit by pummelling it with more bullets, thoroughly impressed by his hired mercenary's battle skills—not that he would ever admit it!

The scorpion was not to be so easily defeated however, as it surged forward again this time whipping around and catching Barret hard in the stomach with its tail. He flew backwards and hit the railing of the platform hard. It was a long drop below but thankfully Barret seemed to be thick skinned, and maintained his balance while shaking off the worst of the strike in a just a few seconds.

Cloud attacked it again, this time with two lighting bolts in quick succession. Something in its electrics short-circuited and the scorpion's tail began to spark and shake violently.

"DAMN!" Barret bellowed even louder this time, and he pointed with his human arm at the tail which was now pulled high in the air behind the beast's body, aimed directly at him. Instinctively he threw out his gun arm and shot a round right into the tail.

Cloud knew what was coming next, and he yelled for Barret to take cover as he dived behind some nearby debris that the scorpion had knocked from the wall on his last assault, but it was too late. At that moment the scorpion unleashed its deadliest attack, and from the tip of its malfunctioning tail came three devastating lasers aimed directly at the spot where Barret was standing.

All Cloud could see was smoke from the blast, as well as the flames from a nearby computer terminal that had caught fire. He looked at the robot which was having serious issues now; it seemed as if its last attack caused as much damage to itself as it did to Barret, its tail now hung limply behind it. This was an opportunity too good to miss. Cloud seized his blade and ran at the scorpion, jumping high and pulling the sword back above his head before bringing it down hard on the base of the tail.

The scorpion screeched in pain, raising again onto its hind legs and turning to see its dismembered tail sitting lifelessly on the floor. Again it howled and returned its attentions to Cloud but before it could so much as lower its pincers to him there was a voice from behind them.

"Shoulda hit me harder you six-legged _freak_!" Barret roared standing atop a pile of debris, blood dripping down the side of his face as he lifted his gun arm and loaded it with an ominous looking red ammunition.

Within seconds a bright orange orb of what Cloud could only describe as pure firepower had materialised at the tip of Barret's gun, and it was growing bigger by the second. The scorpion, distracted by this, turned from Cloud and began to charge at Barret but it was too late. Barret had released the orb directly into the face of the scorpion, and the blast was deafening. Cloud looked away and covered his ears as the monster flailed for a moment before slumping to the ground utterly defeated.

"Come on!" Barret called. It was amazing that the platform was still in tact after the beating it had just endured but the duo scrambled across it, back out to where they had left Jessie. The whole fight had taken a mere four and a half minutes, which meant they had just over five minutes left to evacuate the reactor and get to a safe position before the whole place blew into a million pieces.

With the alarm still ringing, guards of every type were storming their escape route. Cloud swung his sword expertly at robot and human alike, tearing down anything that stood between him and the exit to this nightmare. Meanwhile Barret, limping slightly as he ran, never missed a shot as he aimed his arm at anything that moved.

Along the way they caught up with Jessie and Biggs who were also battling hard to clear the route to their safety. Finally they were back at the bridge and could see Wedge looking frantic in the distance. There were guards all around him but somehow it seemed like he was keeping them at bay. As Cloud got closer he could see that Wedge was actually wielding an enormous axe, slamming it down on his foes and breaking through helmet and armour alike with incredible ease. Within the space of just thirty seconds, Wedge had taken out a dozen guards without taking a single hit; Cloud had seriously underestimated this guy!

With the exit clear, the five of them, each bloodied and battered scrambled through to safety, and just as they escaped the building and dived for the nearest cover, the mission was accomplished. At that moment Midgar residents from east to west, Upper and Lower, felt the effects of Avalanche's first victory over Shinra. The reactor was destroyed.

* * *

><p>Back on the streets the aftermath of the explosion was causing pandemonium. At Barret's orders the team had split up and were to meet up again back at their headquarters in Sector 7. Cloud was on his own now, fighting his way through the crowds. There were people everywhere in total shock; children crying separated from their parents, drunkards stumbling around in a daze, dogs barking endlessly at the confusion.<p>

Cloud was getting frustrated, all he wanted now was to get as far away from the scene of the crime as possible, collect his money, and move on to the next job. It seemed Barret had other ideas as he'd told Cloud to wait until they were back on safe turf before any payment was to be made.

He continued to fight the onslaught of people in every direction, when he noticed a girl. She was more beautiful than any he had ever seen. Even amidst all the confusion she stood out to him, her long pink dress in total contrast to the black and grey around her. And those eyes, so alive and mesmerising shining bright green, but not like his own glowing Mako-affected eyes, hers shone as if by some sort of magic. Her light brown hair was tied back in a long plait and in her hand she carried a basket of somewhat trampled but still pretty wild flowers.

At that moment a large man who was shrieking wildly about the apocalypse and scaring several nearby children in the process, accidentally knocked the girl over. At once Cloud was by her side and in retaliation he punched the man square in the jaw. The nearby children screamed and people around them pushed away, giving Cloud space to breathe. Reaching his arm out to the girl he helped her back onto her feet.

"Thank you" she said timidly, looking embarrassed at Cloud's heroic efforts.

He didn't say anything but continued to stare into those beautiful eyes.

She blushed a shade of pink that matched her dress and asked him, "What happened here?"

Cloud wasn't listening; still transfixed by her beauty he saw her lips move but heard nothing. She asked him again, this time gesturing to the chaos around them hoping to emphasise the importance of her question.

Wandering why she wanted to talk about the stupid actions of Avalanche when they could in fact be discussing the softness of her skin or the way her mouth went up more on one side than the other when she smiled, making her even more beautiful, was beyond him.

"Nothing," he finally replied, not realising until after the word had come out of his mouth, quite how stupid it sounded. Regardless of his blunder he continued, "…hey, listen. Don't see many flowers around here." He gestured to the blooms in her basket and she smiled again.

"Oh these, do you like them?" She delicately stroked the petal of a pink rose between her thumb and forefinger. "They're only 1 gil."

Cloud didn't have to be prompted twice; he would have bought the whole basket if it made her smile again. Handing a single gil over to the flower girl, she took the large pink rose and stepping closer to him, gently pressed it through a buttonhole on his jacket.

He breathed in deeply, pretending to smell the flower, but really inhaling the girl's scent instead. It was sweet, mouth-watering even. She stepped back and looked directly into his eyes, smiling her special smile.

"Thanks," she said at last, and with that she slipped back into the crowd and was gone.


	3. Chapter 2: The Sector 5 Reactor

_RECAP – Ex-SOLDIER Cloud Strife joined the rebel group Avalanche as they destroyed one of Midgar City's Mako reactors. Now fleeing the scene, Cloud finds himself looking for payment and his next job, but an old friend could complicate things. _

CHAPTER 2 – The Sector 5 Reactor

"Get this inside you boys! You'll soon be feeling better!"

A pretty girl with a long dark ponytail placed a huge pitcher of beer along with two enormous plates of home cooked chicken wings on the table in front of Biggs, Wedge and Barret. Within seconds the three men were devouring the feast before them like animals. Jessie rolled her eyes and poured herself a pint, before settling at a table at the other end of the bar from her teammates.

The bar was Tifa's 7th Heaven, the best pub in the Sector 7 slums; its basement also served as the secret headquarters for Avalanche. Tifa was the landlady, and a childhood sweetheart of Cloud's. She walked back to the bar, pleased to see her cooking so appreciated, and began to polish the glasses.

"When I'm older I want to be just like you, Tifa." It was Marlene, Barret's four-year-old daughter, who was perched on a stool staring at Tifa with baby doe eyes. Tifa walked over and kissed her head with a wink. Marlene beamed.

"So what happened to Cloud?" Tifa asked Barret.

His head emerged momentarily from the plate of wings and he responded, "He'll be here."

Tifa looked at the clock above the door and saw that it was now almost 1am. The rest of the team had been home more than an hour, where the hell was he? She had been so excited when she'd first found out that Cloud was back in Midgar and that he'd be helping to further Avalanche's cause, even if it were primarily for the money. But if he was taken from her again so soon after they'd been reunited she knew she would struggle to recover.

Just then the door to the bar opened and there he was; tall, handsome and as intense as ever.

"Cloud!" she squealed, running towards him and throwing her arms around his neck.

He grinned stupidly. In the years they had been apart, Tifa had certainly blossomed. She was always a pretty girl, but now she was a woman, and a very fine woman at that! She certainly filled out her tight white vest and short leather skirt better than any other girl he knew.

"Welcome home," she whispered in his ear. Then, pulling away she said seriously, "Did you fight with Barret?"

Cloud raised one eyebrow, it seemed like a stupid question in light of the mission they had just undergone. Even so he nodded his head.

"I should have known, you've always been getting into fights since you were little." She looked at the floor and began to blush, "I was worried."

Regaining her composure she ran her hands down Cloud's muscular chest, enjoying the warmth of his body, and noticed the rose in his buttonhole. "A flower? Where did you find it? They grow so rarely here in the slums."

Smiling at being reminded of the beautiful flower girl, Cloud pulled the rose from his jacket and perched it gently in Tifa's dark hair. Her eyes twinkled as a perfect smile spread across her face.

"Right fools…" Barret called from the table, "staff meeting's started!"

But Cloud had no intention of staying for a debrief. He wanted his payment and to leave Barret and his buddies for good.

"No thanks, Barret. You can pay me now and I'll be on my way."

Barret's lip curled into a snarl. Was this joker really so concerned with money and nothing else? Didn't he understand the seriousness of what was happening to their planet? That Marlene and her friends won't even make it to adulthood if the Shinra keeps on sucking the life out of the planet at the rate they are now?

Tifa stepped forward, "Join us, Cloud" she pleaded, "we can't let Shinra get away with this. Help us!"

She always did know how to make him feel guilty. Ever since they were kids growing up in peaceful Nibelheim together, Tifa had always known how to twist his arm. It took a great effort but eventually he turned away from her and silently shook his head.

"So you forgot the promise?" It was a last ditch attempt to make him stay. Tifa meant business; there was no way she was going to let him walk away from her again. "Remember, it was seven years ago?"

Cloud turned back to her, an incredulous look on his face. Of course he hadn't forgotten, but they were kids then.

"You left me to join SOLDIER," Tifa continued, "You wanted to become the next Sephiroth. But you promised that even though you were leaving me, you'd still rescue me, just once, so I could know what it felt like." She was dangerously close to tears now.

"Yeah, well I'm not in SOLDIER anymore, and I'm not a hero." His voice quavered a little as he said this. She was getting to him.

"Join us…please," she said again. There was a silence that seemed to stretch for minutes. Biggs and Jessie both looked tensely at Cloud, while Wedge didn't know where to look, his little eyes darting from Cloud to Tifa to Barret and back to Cloud again.

Finally Cloud spoke and addressing Barret he said, "Pay me the 2000 for the first mission now, and make it 3000 for the next and you've got yourself a deal."

Tifa was ecstatic but Barret looked as if Cloud had just insulted his dead mother. Biting his tongue to prevent him from saying what he really wanted to in front of Marlene, he growled through gritted teeth, "I'll give you 1500 for today and 2000 for the next, and you'll be grateful for it, punkass!" At that he picked up Marlene and slammed out of the bar.

The next mission was to take place just three days after the first, and was to be almost an exact repeat of its predecessor, only this time on the Sector 5 Reactor. Cloud spent the few days in between getting to know the Sector 7 slums a little better and shopping for supplies at the local munitions store. Remembering the success of his lightning bolts against the scorpion, he invested his earnings in a Fire materia; materia being the small magical orbs that allow the holder to perform certain magical spells and abilities. He also bought improved armour, as Tifa was to accompany them on the next mission, and there was no way he was going to let any harm come to her, not after she had reminded him of the promise.

Cloud considered venturing away from Sector 7 to see how the aftermath of the first reactor explosion was affecting the rest of the city, but considering the lengths Shinra was going to in order to find the culprits he thought better of doing so. One thing was for certain however, and that was that Avalanche had now become a household name. No one knew who they were or where they came from, but people did know that at last there was someone who was brave enough to stand up to the Shinra, and that their name was Avalanche.

When the time came for the next mission, Cloud prepped himself for round 2. Biggs, Wedge and Jessie had already gone ahead to set up the fake passes for the train, while Tifa, who was looking more excited by the second, made sure everything was going to be okay at the bar while she was gone.

Cloud had never seen or even imagined Tifa in any kind of combat situation. He knew she was tough, but was it really a good idea to bring her out on such a dangerous mission? After last time, there was really no way that Shinra would cut any corners concerning security now. This mission was going to be a lot tougher than the last.

By 11:30 they were on the train and making steady progress. It didn't take long for Barret to clear the carriage, which was already quiet after most Midgar inhabitants were too scared to take public transport for fear of another terror attack.

"We've got three minutes until the ID check area," Tifa told them. "Jessie's passes should get us through like last time, then it'll be clear sailing to the reactor."

Cloud rolled his eyes, again reminded of just how amateur a group Avalanche really was. There was no way it would ever be 'clear sailing'. But at that moment the lights in the carriage went out and were replaced by the eerie red glow that marked the electronic scan system.

"What the hell?" yelled Barret. "I thought you said three minutes!"

Tifa looked concerned, and Cloud rolled his eyes again.

"It's okay," she said, "Jessie's passes will get us through."

But right at that moment a shrill voice sounded throughout the train saying, "Unidentified passengers confirmed…complete lockdown and search to be conducted immediately!"

Tifa and Barret looked at each other in disbelief, neither of them sure of what to do. Cloud on the other hand was already surveying the carriage. They heard several clicks and realised that they had been locked in.

"Here," Cloud gestured to one of the large windows, and a moment later smashed it with his foot. Despite being on underground tracks, there was still plenty of room in the tunnel either side of the train. "We jump."

Barret looked at him as if he were completely mad, "I ain't jumpin' out of no speeding train!"

But Tifa understood it was their only option. Without saying a word, she moved to the broken window, the wind whipping her long hair wildly around her face, and leaped gracefully down onto the tracks.

"Tifa!" Barret called after her, looking completely panic stricken.

"You're next big guy," Cloud said with a wicked smile, finding Barret's fear quite entertaining.

"A leader always stays until the end," he responded, a layer of sweat forming on his brow and upper lip.

"Fine," Cloud said, and without so much as a backward glance, he crouched in front of the window and jumped down from the train. His landing was rough, and he rolled several times before coming to a stop against the dirty wall of the tunnel; he was going to have some impressive bruises tomorrow morning.

In the distance he could see Tifa running towards him, she looked unharmed thankfully, while in the other direction he heard a sudden breaking of glass and a strangled yell. Barret had clearly found the courage to jump; either that or he'd been forced out.

Reunited with Tifa, the pair continued up the tracks to where Barret sat slumped against the wall, slightly cross-eyed.

"Look at the little chocobos," he muttered softly.

Cloud and Tifa exchanged a concerned look, and hauled their leader to his feet. One on either side of him they made their way further up the tracks, following the direction of the train.

"We're hitting the reactor from underground this time," Tifa explained after they'd been walking for about fifteen minutes. "There-" she pointed to a small ventilation shaft at one side of the tunnel, "according to Jessie that should take us right next to the reactor."

The next hour was spent crawling through tiny tunnels, climbing up and down ladders, and eventually reaching a locked doorway with a sign that read 'Reactor 5 – Authorized Personnel Only'.

"Bingo!" Cloud thought, but how were they going to get through it? He didn't have to wonder for long because a moment later Barret, who seemed to be back to his usual self, was battering the doorway with bullets.

Cloud drew his sword ready for the inevitable alarm and wave of guards that was sure to come running thanks to Barret's idiotically loud display, but for some reason there was no need. The door fell with a clunk off its hinges and the trio walked right into a large, empty chamber directly inside the reactor.

The passage to the incinerator where they were to attach the bomb was equally straightforward. Cloud couldn't believe their luck as they made it past guard after guard completely unnoticed. The route was becoming familiar now, with much of the interior layout of the Sector 5 Reactor, the exact same as that in Reactor 1. Finally they reached the long platform which at its end housed their destination. The smell of Mako in here was once again overpowering, even for Cloud who was far less sensitive to it than the others. His head began to pound but he ignored it, he was ready for his mission this time and knew exactly what he had to do.

Taking the bomb from Barret he moved towards the incinerator, still fighting the pounding in his head. This time he set the timer for a lengthier fifteen minutes, and was just about finished when his surroundings went completely black. He fell onto his back on the floor, and he could hear Tifa's concerned voice, "Cloud! What's the matter?"

Slowly the reactor rematerialized before him, but it wasn't the same reactor. It was somewhere from his past. The reactor at Nibelheim, and there before him was Tifa, looking so young and innocent. Except she was covered in blood, not her own blood but the blood of a man whose body was slumped in her arms.

"Who did this to you?" she shrieked. "Who did this to my father?"

Goosebumps covered Cloud's body from head to toe, and tears stung his eyes at the terrible memory he was witnessing again.

"Shinra! Mako Reactors! Sephiroth! I hate them all!" she yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks, and with that she pulled the glinting silver samurai sword from her father's dead body and walked slowly, her shoulders slouched, her fists clenched, and a determined look on her face like Cloud had never seen before or since, into the antechamber beyond.

He opened his eyes and found he was back in the present. Tifa and Barret stood over him, peering at his face in horror.

"What happened?" they asked him.

But Cloud couldn't bring himself to tell them. With a sideways glance at Tifa—sweet innocent Tifa—he lied, "Nothing. The Mako in here got too much for me, that's all." And before either of his teammates could probe any further, he moved back to the device and finished setting the bomb.

No alarms sounded. Maybe it was to be smooth sailing after all; it would really be a miracle if they made it out of this one scot-free. There was only one way to find out, and as fast as they could they retraced their steps and made their way quickly towards the exit. However instead of finding themselves back at the tunnels toward the train line, they instead ended up out in the open standing on a T-shaped foot bridge with what must have been a 200 foot drop to the slums below on all sides.

The three of them halted suddenly, unsure whether to take the right or left path.

"This way!" Barret decided, but it was to late. Out of nowhere they could hear the footsteps of a dozen Shinra guards running towards them. They turned quickly and made for the opposite side but it was useless, the way was already blocked by a whole army of guards.

The only escape now was to head back the way they had come, but as they turned they could see a solitary figure walking towards them. He was short and fat and seemed to be wearing a fine, crimson coloured suit. As he moved closer they could see that his blonde hair was greasy and combed over an emerging bald spot, and that his thick moustache was beginning to turn grey. He wore a sadistic grin on he face and had a cigar clenched firmly between his yellowed teeth.

"P-President Shinra!" Barret gawped in disbelief.

The President's eyes glinted at the evident fear in Barret's voice. It was clear he had caught the group of rebels by surprise. At last he spoke, "So you all must be that…what was it again?"

"AVALANCHE!" Barret boomed, "And don't you forget it!"

"I see you have a traitor in your ranks," the President said in his slimy voice, gesturing at Cloud. "Tell me boy, how does it feel to fall from the splendour of SOLDIER into the arms of vermin like this?"

Barret made to step forward, his jaw clenched, but Tifa pulled him back. Cloud didn't respond but looked embarrassed by the question.

"Tell me, what was your name boy?"

"Cloud."

"Forgive me," the President continued, "I can't be expected to remember every man in my employment, unless you become the next Sephiroth, that is." He sniggered again, his eyes piercing right through Cloud who felt like an idiot in front of Tifa and Barret.

"Well this was fun. I'm afraid I'm a very busy man, and must leave you now but don't worry, I've arranged for a playmate to keep you company." The President snapped his fingers and a low rumbling immediately began from behind the guards.

A second later an eighteen foot hovering robot smashed through them and charged straight for Cloud. He dived just in time.

"Meet Airbuster, our Weapons Development Program created him just for you. Enjoy your play date." Within seconds a helicopter appeared from nowhere and whisked the President away from the scene.

Airbuster was hovering menacingly on the platform, Cloud on one side, Tifa and Barret on the other. With the President gone, the remaining guards who hadn't already been flattened by the robot ran for the nearest exit.

As usual, Barret struck first. Without a moment's thought he aimed his gun arm at the back of the robot's head and unleashed all his fury at the monster. Cloud was next into the fray, aiming for its arms with his sword. And again he summoned lighting bolts hoping for a repeat of their battle with the scorpion.

Tifa too worked hard to hurt their foe. Her knuckle duster gloves weren't much use against its reinforced metallic body, so instead she went for its wiring when she could get close enough to it. The rest of the time she hung back tossing potions and other healing items to the others when they needed them.

It was the toughest foe they'd yet faced, every hit they landed was counteracted with a blow twice as hard from the robot. It kept bashing into them with its heavy bumper, while at other times it unleashed its devastating big bomber attack that sent two great explosions of white light at the victim, knocking them clean off their feet and causing large amounts of damage in the process.

After hitting it with more than a dozen lightning bolts Cloud was beginning to feel the strain of the battle. His body was tiring dramatically; his stomach winded from the last blow he took, and his busted lip was dripping blood.

Then Tifa was caught square in the face by a particularly nasty attack and crumpled to the floor. She looked as if she were out cold. Cloud tried to run to her but due to the narrow platform they were fighting on, struggled to make it past the robot. It didn't matter though, Barret was by her side in seconds, tending to her wounds and feeding her a restorative draught.

"Cover me!" he yelled to Cloud who without even thinking leapt high in the air, his Braver in hand, and came crashing down sword first onto the robot's head.

Stung by Cloud's attack the robot immediately froze, however within seconds it began to vibrate violently, sparks soaring in every direction, electrical currents flying from its body like stray lightning bolts. There was a moment of excruciating realisation as Cloud guessed what was coming next; Airbuster exploded.

The blast was deafening, and too much for the platform to hold. Cloud slipped and found himself hanging on for his life. The only thing stopping him from falling to his death was a charred piece of railing that he clung onto with all his strength.

Tifa, who had barely come round from the previous hit, couldn't believe what she was seeing.

"It's gonna blow!" Barret yelled, "We have to get out of here!"

"We can't just leave him!" Tifa screamed back, furious at Barret's willingness to let Cloud fall to his death.

"It's okay, this doesn't have to be the end. Protect yourselves…go!" Cloud, ever the hero, was willing to accept his fate, "Look after Tifa, Barret."

"NO!" Tifa screamed, but it was too late. The fifteen minutes were up and the reactor blew. The last thing Tifa saw as Barret pulled her along the platform away from the blast was Cloud's Mako-tainted blue eyes shining in the darkness as he fell to his almost certain death.


	4. Chapter 3: The Flower Girl

_Firstly thanks to everyone who's been reading, especially those who've left such kind comments. It's nice to hear that people are enjoying my writing, especially as I had no intention of letting anyone else read it when I first started! Here goes Chapter 3…_

_RECAP – Cloud and the rest of Avalanche had infiltrated a second Mako Reactor but after setting the bomb to destroy it, were ambushed by President Shinra himself. After a dramatic battle, Barret and Tifa were forced to watch as the explosion knocked Cloud from the reactor platform, causing him to fall to his possible death in the slums below._

CHAPTER 3 – The Flower Girl

There was warmth on his face, as if he were lying in the sun and its rays were beaming merrily down upon him. Everywhere was dark but it wasn't as if he was simply floating in nothingness, under his head he could feel something soft like soil, and enveloping him in waves of rapture was the sweetest scent he had ever smelt. It was a soft and delicate aroma like flowers mixed with honey and freshly baked bread, it reminded him of his mother, but she was long gone; could it be that he was in heaven?

He made an attempt to move one of his arms but intense pain shot through it at the slightest effort. Definitely not in heaven. Again he tried to move, this time his legs, but all he could do was feebly wiggle his foot.

"Oh! It moved." He heard a pretty, almost musical voice say in astonishment from somewhere nearby.

With all the strength he could muster he slowly opened one eyelid, and there, staring back at him, were those magical green eyes. He would know them anywhere. A smile immediately crept across his face and his new companion found herself smiling back in response, one corner of her mouth raised slightly higher than the other. She had always felt this made her face appear lopsided and usually made an effort to correct it, but she found that in the presence of this handsome stranger she didn't really care.

"Are you okay?" she asked him in a concerned voice.

Cloud did the best he could to mutter a response but again the pain overwhelmed him and his grin became a grimace.

"Here," she said, kneeling next to him and pulling a pink potion bottle from her pocket, "drink this," she insisted, and slowly she slipped her soft hand behind his head and gently raised it up so he could drink from the strange bottle.

His body was immediately consumed with a healing warmth, although at the same time he felt a long shiver run the entire length of his spine. He wasn't sure if this was the effects of the potion or because the girl's fingertips were now brushing the back of his bare neck.

He smiled again and weakly whispered, "Thank you," before laying his head back on the ground.

"You gave me a real shock just now, crashing down like that in front of me. I guess the roof and the flowerbed here must have broken your fall, and your arm of course. Wait there."

A moment later she was back and had what appeared to be a large piece of material, she fashioned it expertly around Cloud's arm, forming a sling over his shoulder.

"Where am I?" Cloud finally asked.

"In a church in the Sector 5 slums."

He looked around for the first time and saw that she was right. He had fallen from the reactor in Upper Midgar above, all the way down to the slums beneath, and landed in a church. Derelict pews surrounded them and beneath him lay a patch of once beautiful but now flattened wild flowers. "I'm sorry," he said hastily, referring to the flowers he had ruined.

"It's okay." She replied, "They say you can't grow flowers in Midgar, but for some reason the flowers have no trouble blooming here. They'll grow back."

Cloud still felt guilty for destroying the girl's source of income and obliterating something so beautiful. He sat up now for the first time, that potion, whatever it was, had really worked wonders on him; his head had cleared and the pain in his body was beginning to ease.

"Do you have any materia?" The flower girl asked him while tending to some of the less trampled blossoms that might still be salvageable.

The question caught Cloud off guard, but after a moment he responded, "Yes, some."

"Me too, but mine is good for absolutely nothing." She giggled, touching a large gold bangle on her wrist that housed two glowing white orbs which looked like giant pearls, sparkling when they caught the sunlight.

"You probably just don't know how to use it." Cloud said matter-of-factly.

"I do, it just doesn't have any uses. But I keep it with me because I feel safe just having it. It belonged to my mother you see."

Cloud looked sceptical but took her word for it. Now it was his turn to ask the questions. "What's your name?" he asked casually.

"Aeris," she said. It was a pretty name, Cloud thought. "I'm a flower girl." She added despite the fact that she knew Cloud was already aware of this.

"I'm Cloud," he said in return, "and I do a little bit of everything."

She smiled and said, "A jack of all trades!" Before giggling quietly to herself as if there were a hilarious private joke that Cloud wasn't in on. A moment later she asked him, "Have you ever been a bodyguard?"

He shook his head, and she looked disappointed, so he hastily added, "But there's always a first time for everything."

Aeris laughed again, "Will you get me home safely then? I want to get out of here."

"It'll cost you."

She feigned shock and pretended to think for a moment. "How about a date?" she suggested, and Cloud could feel his cheeks begin to flush pink.

However before he could respond, they were distracted by a curious noise from the back of the church. Turning to see who or what had caused it they both noticed for the first time a young man in a dark blue suit sitting on the very back pew. He smiled menacingly at them, and Cloud could see that he had long auburn hair and that he wore no tie with his suit but that his white shirt was undone almost to his naval, revealing a smooth muscular chest.

Cloud recognised the signs at once. Whoever this guy was, he was a Turk, one of four or five elite spies hired to scout for potential members of SOLDIER and do Shinra's dirty work. Was he here to fight them? How could he have known Cloud was there?

The man stood, and Cloud reached for his sword just as several Shinra guards entered the church behind the red-haired figure.

"Want him taken out, Reno?" One of the guards asked him.

"I haven't decided yet." Reno replied, still smiling his snakelike smile.

They continued to stare each other down, neither man willing to make the first move. It became too much for Aeris who abruptly fled to a room in the back of the church, dragging Cloud along with her.

"After them!" Reno shouted to the guards in a hiss.

The guards chased them into the back room and aiming their guns began to shoot directly at Cloud. Aeris, already familiar with the church, knew that the only exit from here was to climb up to the high balcony and then onto the rafters and out through the hole Cloud had made in the roof when he had fallen. She led the way, and Cloud followed, doing his best to dodge the bullets despite knowing that he was still far from recovered after the fall.

Any moment when the gunfire eased, Cloud turned and managed to hit the guards with a fire spell, using the materia he had bought back in Sector 7. That seemed like weeks ago now, and he wondered whether Barret had made it back to headquarters, and what Tifa was doing without him.

By the time they reached the rafters, only one guard remained. Cloud sent a final fire spell in his direction, and they were home free. Out on the roof, Aeris again led the way to safety and the two of them began to make their way to Aeris' home in the heart of the Sector 5 slums, choosing to travel along the rooftops rather than the road, in order to avoid running into Reno.

"So they're looking for me again." Aeris said through deep gasps, as they stopped to catch their breath once they were a safe distance from the church.

"You?" Cloud said sounding surprised.

"Yes," she said sadly, "it isn't the first time either."

"But why would the Turks be after you?" Cloud was certain Reno had come looking for him.

She took a moment, thinking about how to answer this question, before finally responding, "Maybe they think I have what it takes to be in SOLDIER."

Cloud got the distinct impression that there was something she wasn't telling him, but she didn't allow him to dwell on it long, before he knew it they were in the Sector 5 slums, and she was leading him to her home.

Cloud's mouth fell open. Despite being located just outside the core of the slums, Aeris' house was incredible. The house itself was a small wooden structure with a pink roof and a little terrace, but the real eye-opener was the garden. It must have been the only house in Lower Midgar to actually have a garden. There were plants and bushes everywhere although Cloud noticed no flowers, and a stream ran through its middle, babbling gently.

Aeris beamed at Cloud's reaction, and opened the front door.

"Mom, I'm home!" she called as they entered the ground floor of her home. It consisted of a spacious dining room filled with vases of fragrant, brightly coloured flowers on every surface, and a small kitchen, from which Aeris' mother emerged.

She looked nothing like Aeris, Cloud noticed. Her hair was darker and pulled back into a tight bun on the back of her head. Her skin had more colour to it and she was much shorter and skinnier than Aeris. Most notably though, her eyes were a dull brown, nothing compared to the emeralds that lit up Aeris's face.

"This is my new bodyguard, his name is Cloud." Aeris introduced him.

Aeris' mother eyed Cloud up and down with a disapproving look. She lingered on his still-bandaged arm and tutted. "I'm Elmyra." She said stiffly.

He held his hand out to hers but she ignored it and turned back to Aeris. "Are you okay?" she asked her.

"I'm fine, Cloud was with me." Aeris said happily, and with that Elmyra gave one last unimpressed look at Cloud and headed up the stairs away from them.

Cloud had the distinct impression that his presence wasn't welcome in this house. Regardless, he walked over to a nearby chair and sat down, glad for the chance to take the weight off his feet.

"How are you feeling now?" Aeris asked him, "I have more of that medicine if you want it."

"No, I'll be okay." He said shaking his head.

"So what do you want to do next?"

Cloud thought for a moment and decided that he should probably head for Sector 7 and check that Tifa and Barret were okay. "I need to get to Tifa's bar." He said finally.

Aeris looked up at him quickly, she had been fixing herself a drink but was now looking at Cloud with an interested, if a little intense, look on her face. "Is Tifa a girl?" she asked him.

Cloud nodded.

"A girl…friend?"

Now he was stumped. Was Tifa his girlfriend? They had never officially said so, but they had so much history together. At any other time in his life he would have jumped at the chance to have Tifa on his arm, she was a great girl, so strong and beautiful, but now he had met Aeris he wasn't sure what he wanted. Slowly, he shook his head.

Aeris quickly turned back to her drink in order to prevent Cloud from seeing the extremely satisfied look on her face.

"Okay," she said, "it's getting late now, so how about you rest up here tonight, and then I'll show you the way to Sector 7 tomorrow?"

It sounded like a reasonable plan so Cloud agreed and Aeris disappeared upstairs to make up a bed for him to sleep in. A few minutes later, while Cloud was admiring the various flowers around the room, Elmyra came back downstairs and spoke to him.

"That glow in your eyes…you're from SOLDIER, right?"

Cloud felt uncomfortable but nodded before adding, "Well, I used to be."

Elmyra sighed a deep sigh. She looked at him again, her tired, wrinkled eyes piercing deep into him. "I don't know how to say this but," she paused for a moment, "but you must leave tonight…alone, without telling Aeris."

Cloud was outraged but before he could say anything to her, Elmyra fell to her knees on the floor and began to plead.

"Please! Don't ask me why, but you must go. It will do Aeris no good to get mixed up with the likes of you. I can look after her."

Cloud didn't know what to say. One moment this woman was a picture of restraint and the next she was huddled on the floor, her dignity gone, begging him to leave. She had tears running down her cheeks and her hands were clasped together as if in prayer, eventually he nodded.

"Cloud!" Aeris was calling him from somewhere upstairs. Grateful for the excuse to leave this bizarre scene he brushed quickly past Elmyra and went upstairs to where Aeris was waiting for him. The bedroom was small but welcoming and the mere sight of the bed made Cloud's knees weak as he remembered how long it had been since he had actually slept.

"Well I guess I'll see you in the morning Cloud, good night bodyguard." She said with a grin before leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

From the moment Cloud's head hit the pillow he fell into a very deep and dreamless sleep. However it was just several hours later when he awoke, and knew that it was time to leave. He crept silently from his room and down the stairs, making sure he missed the creaky floorboards that he had sussed out the night before. He felt guilty for leaving Aeris like this, but it was for the best, and he had a feeling their paths would cross again someday.

Making his way back through the Sector 5 slums, he figured that to get to Sector 7 he'd logically have to make his way through Sector 6. He'd heard from Biggs that Sector 6 was a total wasteland and home to a host of shady characters and dangerous creatures, but despite this he had to get to Tifa, and that was the only way he could think of.

He set off at a run and at the entrance to Sector 6 found himself face to face with someone he hadn't expected to see for at least a little longer.

"Going somewhere?" Aeris asked him with venom in her voice.

Cloud could feel himself turning red and wanting the ground to swallow him up rather than look into those disappointed emerald eyes, he muttered a feeble apology.

"Some bodyguard you turned out to be." She said, "Sneaking off in the middle of the night like that. Did you really think I wouldn't notice? There's a reason the Turks think I'm worthy of SOLDIER, you know."

Cloud flushed red again and felt like an enormous idiot. What was it about this girl? He always ended up making a fool of himself in front of her.

"Well we better get going if you want to make it to Tifa's 7th Heaven!" she used so much force while sounding out Tifa's name she accidentally spat while saying it.

"It's too dangerous," Cloud tried one last time to make her go home, thinking again of her mother's face so frail and serious, but it was too late. She had already run ahead and that left nothing for Cloud to do than accept defeat and join her.

They made a good team fighting through the creeps of Sector 6. Cloud provided the muscle, tearing through foes with his blade, while Aeris hung back and supplied him with a never-ending supply of potions and restorative spells. Every now and then when things got a little sticky, she hit out with an offensive ice attack, and before they knew it they had made it to the Sector 7 gate.

There was a derelict play area here, complete with swings, a slide and miniature roundabout. Aeris's eyes lit up as she saw it, and she immediately ran to the climbing frame and pulled herself up to its peak.

"Over here Cloud," she called, and he made his way over to join her. "I used to play here all the time as a kid, I can't believe it's still here!"

He pulled himself up next to her, and they sat silently, so close to each other that their arms were touching. Immediately hundreds of goose bumps erupted on his skin. He couldn't help it, sitting there like that with her just seemed right. He felt totally relaxed and safe, and he was sure she felt it too.

Finally she asked him, "What rank were you? You know, in SOLDIER?"

"First Class." He responded quickly.

"Just the same as him," she replied.

A puzzled look crossed Cloud's face until she said, "My first boyfriend."

"What was his name? I probably knew him."

Aeris stalled for a moment before retorting, "Does it really matter?" Normally she hated it when people answered a question with a question, but she wasn't ready to open that can of worms yet.

They sat in silence again for at least another ten minutes, as Aeris rubbed her fingers repeatedly over two little letters carved into the chipped paint on the metal frame; they were a little A and Z separated by a heart.

Their happy silence was broken however by the large steel gates to Sector 7 opening noisily, and a decorated chocobo drawn carriage pulling out. The chocobo was yellow and looked tired, its wings had been clipped to prevent it from flying off and its beak had faded from bright orange to a muddy brown colour. Nothing like the handsome birds that won thousands of gil for their owners through chocobo racing, Cloud thought to himself. However it was when he took his eyes from the chocobo that he noticed the cargo it was carrying. Stood at the back of the carriage was an incredibly beautiful woman. She wore a rich purple dress that even from a distance looked to be made from the finest of materials, and her slender legs shown to their full advantage would have put Midgar's most famous supermodels to shame. Meanwhile her long dark hair fell freely behind her and framed her face perfectly. It was only at this point, looking so closely at the girl's face that he realised whom it actually was.

"Tifa?" He called out, as much a question as an exclamation.

Aeris turned quickly to see, "That's Tifa?" she asked incredulously.

Cloud nodded still shocked at just how incredible she looked. "Where could she be headed dressed like that? And where did she even get that dress from?"

"It looks like the carriage is going to Wall Market. There are all sorts of people who'd be happy to see a pretty girl like that down there." Aeris told him.

Cloud wondered if Tifa had seen him sitting there with Aeris, causing a pang of guilt to hit him though he pretended not to notice.

"Well…let's go!" Aeris exclaimed and she jumped down from the frame and ran after the carriage, once again with Cloud trailing behind her.


	5. Chapter 4: A Date With The Don

_RECAP: Having almost fallen to his death after an explosive mission with freedom fighters Avalanche, Cloud found himself in the company of Aeris, a beautiful flower girl. Now they venture to Wall Market in pursuit of Tifa, Cloud's childhood friend, but how will things go when Cloud has to split his affections between both Tifa and Aeris?_

CHAPTER 4 – A Date With The Don

Cloud was always impressed when he ventured to Wall Market. He had only been there a few times but he still regarded it as one of his favourite places in the whole of Midgar. The sights, sounds, smells and colours were unrivalled by anywhere else in the city. From every shop came calls of what was on offer, trying to entice customers in to spend their hard-earned gil. There were bars, shops, gyms, dressmakers, inns, restaurants and even an exclusive gentlemen's club all packed into the crowded streets and alleyways of Wall Market.

Said gentlemen's club, known as The Honeybee Inn, was to be their first destination. No matter how much Cloud protested that Tifa wouldn't be caught dead in a place like that, Aeris insisted that it made the most sense considering what she was wearing when they saw her. Thus they followed a trail of seedy looking men to the entrance of the Honeybee and Cloud, not in the mood for subtlety, marched directly up to the doorman.

"You know a girl named Tifa?" Cloud growled at the sleazy guy before him.

The doorman looked slightly taken aback by his directness, "Damn, I don't know how news gets out so fast around here!" The man complained, "Tifa's our newest girl."

Cloud raised his eyebrows in surprise, what the hell was she thinking coming to work at a place like this? Aeris too looked shocked, curious to meet the mysterious Tifa in person.

The doorman continued, "I'm afraid she's in a meeting right now though. It's our custom to send all the girls to meet Don Corneo before they start work, you know, out of respect for the Don."

Cloud felt sick. He'd heard about Don Corneo before. He was a twisted businessman who had his finger in 90 per cent of the businesses on Wall Market; he was also an unashamed womaniser who treated women in a very similar way to how Shinra treats the planet.

"You wanna see her," the doorman continued, "you'll just have to wait, but if the Don takes a shine to this girl, you might be waiting a very long time." At this the man boomed a deep throaty laugh and Cloud felt like he wanted to punch the oaf in his overly large nose.

"What about if we went to see the Don ourselves?" Aeris piped up, she knew that the Don's mansion, though heavily guarded, was just at the far end of Wall Market.

The doorman laughed again, "A sweet little thing like you, maybe." He said pointing at Aeris, "but the Don ain't into guys!" he added referring to Cloud who was now shaking with anger.

Aeris quickly thanked the man and pulled Cloud away from the club.

"Well it's settled then," Aeris started, "I'll present myself to the Don and make sure Tifa's okay while you-"

"Nothing's settled." Cloud cut her off and she pouted in frustration.

"Well you can't fight your way in!" She scolded him, "There's really no way for you to get in there…unless…" she stopped speaking suddenly and began to giggle uncontrollably. In fact she was soon laughing so hard that she was bent double, tears tickling the corner of her eyes.

"What are you laughing at?" Cloud asked, annoyed that Aeris clearly wasn't taking the situation seriously.

"Well…" she began, "you could always dress up as a girl." She said before bursting into peals of laughter once more.

Cloud stared at her, his eyes wide in complete disbelief at such a stupid idea.

"Come on, Cloud! This could actually work." She said wiping a stray tear from her cheek, "Besides, you owe me for sneaking out on me like that. And think about Tifa! Anything could be happening to her right as we speak."

Cloud scowled at her, was he really going to take this idea seriously? Would he really put himself through the embarrassment of wearing a dress and a wig when it wasn't even guaranteed to work?"

"Go on, just admit you're a little bit curious to know what it would feel like!" Aeris teased him.

"NO WAY!" Cloud shouted, his face bright red. He had made up his mind; it was a ridiculous idea that would never work. They'd just have to think of something else. But it seemed Aeris had other ideas, she was already running on ahead of him again, and not wanting to lose her in the crowds, Cloud had no choice but to follow her lead.

She took him to a store half way up the market, and much to his annoyance it turned out to be a dress shop.

"I'm not going in there!" He said stubbornly, but Aeris ignored him and marched toward the door.

"If you do this Cloud," she said over her shoulder, "I promise I'll do anything you ask me too." And she smiled her wonderful uneven smile before entering the shop.

"I'm looking to buy a dress." She announced to the man behind the counter.

"I see," he said, "step this way and I'll take your measurements."

"It's not for me. It's for him." And she pointed a thumb over her shoulder at Cloud who had obediently followed her into the store, unable to resist her intriguing offer.

The dressmaker gawped, "A tough looking guy like him?" and he began to laugh in great wheezes.

Cloud slammed his fist down hard on the counter to show that he was deadly serious about this, causing the old dressmaker to jump and drop his tape measure on the floor.

Aeris took charge again, "Now I want something soft, but not cheap looking. I suppose it should be comfortable but let's keep the colour bright. Oh, and it has to shimmer. Yes, it should have plenty of sparkle." She explained, looking Cloud up and down through squinted eyes.

Cloud gulped.

The dressmaker set to work at once, taking Cloud's measurements and occasionally walking over to his fabric counter and picking out certain swatches before holding them up to Cloud's skin and either shaking his head or nodding it vigorously with mutters of "Oh, yes!" and "Just divine!"

With the measuring complete the dressmaker told them that he had just the thing, and disappeared into a room in the back of the store for several minutes. Cloud was beginning to sweat, wondering once again why the hell he had agreed to this harebrained idea in the first place. Then he glanced over at Aeris and remembered.

"Voila!" the dressmaker said triumphantly as he held up a beautiful floor length gown of violet silk, decorated with a pink sash and intricate patterns of gold stitching that truly shimmered as they caught the light.

Aeris gasped in awe, clapping her hands together delightedly, "It's wonderful!" she exclaimed. Cloud on the other hand was looking rather pale, and not at all pleased to see the dress before him.

"Now all we need is a wig." Aeris explained, prompting Cloud to roll his eyes, no longer shocked by anything that was happening on this bizarre day.

"Well look no further," the dressmaker said, directing their attention to a glass case that housed half a dozen wigs. "Take your pick, free of charge if you take the dress."

Aeris thought for a moment before deciding on a long honey blonde one that she claimed would look wonderful with Cloud's complexion and really bring out his eyes.

At last the time had come for Cloud to enter the dressing room and put on the dress. He walked slowly, as if he were walking toward his death, and pulled the curtain closed behind him. Sighing, he looked at the violet monstrosity and vowed not to let this dress defeat him; after all he was doing this for Tifa.

With the dress in place, it was surprisingly comfortable Cloud noticed, he placed the wig on his head and let out one final sigh before drawing back the curtain and revealing himself to Aeris and the dressmaker.

There was a long silence as both of them took in the bizarre sight before them.

"Well the dress is definitely a winner," Aeris said trying to sound positive, the dressmaker nodded appreciatively. "But seriously Cloud, if you want the Don to really believe you're a woman then you have to carry yourself like a woman."

Cloud pulled a face and shrugged absently.

"Stand up straight for one thing and push your chest out. That's it!" Aeris encouraged him. "Now watch how I walk."

She walked from one end of the shop to the other, swaying her hips seductively, "Now you try."

Despairingly Cloud tried to copy her, teetering dangerously in his heels and nearly falling several times in just a few steps.

"You'll get the hang of it." She said rather unconvincingly. "Now all you need is a little colour." And she pulled out a compact from her pocket and began to apply liberal amounts of blush to his cheeks before dabbing pink lipstick onto his thin lips. "Perfect!"

Walking slowly, so as not to trip in his heels again, Cloud made his way to the mirror in order to assess the damages. He still couldn't quite believe that this was really happening. But he had to admit, now that he could actually see himself made up complete with dress, wig and make up, there was definitely a chance that this plan could work.

Leaving the store, Aeris paid the dressmaker for his services and dragged Cloud from the shop. Walking along Wall Market now felt like he was doing it for the very first time. He felt as if all eyes were on him, and indeed they were. As they made their way past a brightly lit gym, Cloud received catcalls and wolf whistles from several of the juiceheads standing outside.

"All dolled up and nowhere to go? Hows about I show you a good time, sweet cheeks!" One of them called.

Cloud gulped and walked faster in an attempt to get away from the musclemen, Aeris trotting behind in order to keep up, stifling her giggles at the hilarity of the situation.

Finally they reached Don Corneo's mansion. It was a large Oriental style structure, decorated around the outside with red and gold paper lanterns. Two burly looking men, each wearing earpieces and carrying guns, guarded the entrance.

"_That_ was the most horrific experience of my life." Cloud muttered, referring to their short journey from the dress store to the mansion.

"You're doing great," Aeris told him kindly, "now lets get to work, sweet cheeks!" And she patted his butt playfully before striding confidently over to the bodyguards.

Cloud could feel his face reddening despite all of the blush he was wearing. It was now or never!

"Ladies! Welcome to the Don's mansion!" One of the guards exclaimed, his hungry eyes taking in every inch of the two beauties before him.

Aeris gave him a coy smile and said, "We wish to meet with the Don. Me and my friend here," she gestured at Cloud, "have a bet that we can each get the Don to make us his new girlfriend, but we don't have a meeting with him. I'm sure a handsome, clever man like you can help us out." She looked up at him expectantly through her long eyelashes, and pouted a little.

The second guard looked sceptical, but the first was mesmerised.

"Sure we can let you in," the first guard said with a stupid grin on his face, and turned to his partner who did not move. They whispered to each other for a moment and Aeris wondered what they were saying.

"The only way I'll allow this, is if you let me have the cute blond when the Don's done with them." The second guard whispered.

"Deal!" Said the first, nodding his head sharply. "Right this way, ladies…" and he opened the doors, ushering them into a large hallway that was lavishly decorated with more Oriental themed artefacts of bright red and gold.

An elderly man came out from a nearby doorway to greet them; he smiled to reveal several missing teeth and gave a shallow bow to both 'ladies'.

"Please follow me," he wheezed, "the Don will see you in just a few moments, until then you can wait with the other hopefuls." The old man turned and led them down a long corridor to a small room in which he told them to wait, before heading back the way they had come.

"Tifa?" Aeris asked politely to a dark haired girl who stood alone inside the room.

"Yes?" She replied in a confused tone, "Do I know you?"

Tifa surveyed the woman in front of her. She was pretty in an ordinary sort of way, but no threat to Tifa's desire for a private meeting with the Don. Her dress was far too casual and the girl had clearly made no effort with her mousy brown hair that lay down her back in a messy plait. However Tifa then noticed the girl's eyes; bright green and sparkling so clearly, like giant emeralds set into a tiara, and she could see that the girl perhaps wasn't so plain after all.

"No, we don't know each other yet, but I've heard a lot about you. Isn't that right, Cloud?"

Tifa noticed for the first time, and she wasn't sure how she'd missed the monstrosity of a woman standing behind the green-eyed girl, a six-foot blonde Amazon woman wearing a stunning violet dress and looking extremely nervous, as if trying to hide from Tifa behind her friend's back.

"Did you just call her Cloud?" Tifa asked the girl, now even more confused.

Aeris nodded, and with a very satisfied look on her face she stepped aside so that Cloud could no longer hide behind her.

"What in the world?" Tifa exclaimed in pure shock, "But why-?"

Cloud looked guiltily at the richly carpeted floor, could this day really contain any more embarrassment for him? But Tifa had stopped gawping now, and within seconds was jumping into his arms.

"I can't believe you're alive! I was so sure the fall would have killed you! Oh I'm so happy Cloud, I really am!" She hugged him hard, trying to ignore the fact that her sweetheart was wearing makeup and a dress. "So how did you escape?" she asked at last.

Cloud cleared his throat, and in the manliest voice his could muster, explained the whole story from falling into the church, to standing before her dressed as a girl.

"Well it seems like you owe Aeris here your life," Tifa said with just the slightest hint of jealously noticeable in her voice, "if she hadn't been there in the church when you crashed to give you that potion, who knows what would have happened to you?"

Aeris blushed a little and made a gesture with her hand as if to say it was nothing.

"What about you?" Cloud asked in return, curious to hear what had happened to Barret and the rest of the team after the explosion, "What happened after I fell?"

Tifa moved from where she stood and sat down in a large crimson armchair, before beginning her story she gave Aeris a suspicious glance from the corner of her eye.

"You can trust her," Cloud said quickly, knowing perfectly well what Tifa was thinking.

"Fine," she said, "after you fell, Barret and I fled from the reactor back to the hideout in Sector 7. I was still feeling pretty weak from our battle with Airbuster, and that mixed with the fact that I thought I'd just lost you again…well, I'm sure you can imagine I wasn't at my best. However when we got back, a stranger to the slums was causing trouble in the bar, Barret kicked him out but Biggs ended up questioning him, that was when Don Corneo's name came up. Barret told me not to pursue it but with you gone I felt like I had nothing else to lose, and came out here today in order to pump him for information that could be useful to AVALANCHE. Every night he has three girls from which he chooses one with whom he spends the night, so long as I can get him to pick me, the mission will be a success."

Cloud listened attentively, a worried look on his face. Tifa had spoken about him like her life was almost worthless without him there; had he underestimated how strong her feelings for him really were?

"Well now it doesn't matter who the Don picks," Aeris piped up, "we're all in on it, so we could all get the information from him."

Tifa shot a rather obnoxious look at her, "If you think you're up for the challenge." She said in an overly confrontational manner.

However at that moment the door swung open marking the return of the old man. "The Don is ready for you." He said, a sadistic grin again showing his missing and rotten teeth. They marched, single file back along the corridor and up a wide stairway finally stopping before a great golden doorway.

"When you enter the room," the old man told them, "line up before the Don next to each other, do not speak or move from the spot where you stand unless expressly told to by the Don. The Don will pick one of you as his prize and take that girl back to his private boudoir, the other two…well, we can discuss that later." He chuckled menacingly, "Is that all clear?"

The three of them nodded, and anxious to learn how this meeting was going to unfold stepped forward into the room.

It was a very grand room, decorated almost solely by what must have been over a hundred dragons. On the floor a great rug was embellished with a giant green dragon, on the wall hung paintings and tapestries of dragons, on the desk sat dozens of miniature dragon figurines. And there, sitting behind the desk, practically drooling at the mouth was the real dragon. His skin was dry and scaly looking, while his teeth were sharp, almost like the fangs of a beast. He wore a knee-length red dressing gown pulled tight around his enormous fat stomach, and under his arms were dark sweat patches. Cloud thought he was perhaps the vilest man he'd ever witnessed.

Regardless of the Don's less than pleasing personal appearance, they lined up obediently before him, and he took several minutes to inspect each of them individually. He spent a long moment staring at Aeris' eyes before moving onto Cloud and running his fingers through his wig. It made Cloud feel incredibly uncomfortable, although worst of all was the Don's inspection of Tifa which involved him grabbing both of her breasts in his hands and squeezing them hard. Cloud noticed her ball her fists at this, but she remained silent and didn't show her obvious shock and anger anywhere on her face.

Finally he strode back over to his desk wearing a wolf-like grin.

"Thank you ladies for all coming tonight," he said in a surprisingly well-spoken accent, "but as you know there can only be one lucky lady. You are all beauties in your own special ways, but the girl I have chosen tonight…" he paused for dramatic effect, "is _this_ healthy looking beauty!"

The Don held his chubby arm out to Cloud whose heart seemed to have stopped beating. Tifa and Aeris both stood dumbstruck, not really believing what they had just heard.

"Come, my sweet." The Don said as he placed his fat sweaty hand in the crook of Cloud's arm and pulled him rather forcefully to a door at the back of the room, "A night of passion awaits!" He whispered into Cloud's ear, his foul-smelling breath making Cloud want to vomit.

"Do what you will with the other two." He told the old man nonchalantly referring to Tifa and Aeris, before pushing Cloud into his boudoir and locking the door behind them.

The Don's bedroom consisted of nothing but an enormous bed, seemingly twice the size of a regular king-sized, and decorated with sheets of gold silk. The only source of light in the room came from a dozen paper lanterns, coloured red and gold like those outside the building, providing the room with an eerie glow; the Don thought it was romantic.

"We're finally alone," the Don said in a voice which he believed to be seductive, "I knew I had to choose you from the moment you stepped through the door. Your silky hair, your almost muscular physique, and I can see from that dress that you clearly look after yourself." He grinned like a Cheshire cat. "Now come to daddy, my little pussycat!"

At this he began to make meowing noises like a little cat. Cloud could have cried it was so excruciating, if anyone ever found out about this he didn't know what he would do.

Feeling as if he had to play along at least a little to earn the Don's trust, he slowly perched himself at the very end of the bed.

"Oh I just love a chickie who plays hard to get! You can come a little closer you know?" The Don said, rubbing the empty space on the bed next to him.

Cloud didn't know what to do, this was all getting a little too real for him now, and he was running out ways to prevent the Don from going in for a kiss.

Quicker than Cloud realised the Don had shuffled up next to him, one hand on his leg and was taking deep sniffs at his neck.

"Your natural scent is driving me wild!" he purred sickeningly. "How's about we get rid of this dress and I'll lose the robe?"

He moved his hand to the strap holding the robe closed around his waist and began to untie the knot, but this was too much for Cloud. He leapt from the bed and scrambled to the door. It was of course, locked.

"What's the matter, baby? Are you scared of what's going to happen when daddy unleashes the dragon?"

Cloud began to heave in disgust and not caring about the consequences, he tore off his wig.

"A man!" The Don cried in outrage, and he reached under his bed to flick the switch that would bring his henchmen running into the room, "GUARDS!" he shouted for emphasis, but no one came.

Cloud seized the opportunity and ripped off his dress, using the sash to tie the Don's hand's together and a belt which hung over the end of the bed to restrain his feet.

There was a pair of silk pyjamas hanging on the back of the door, it was better than walking around in his underwear, Cloud thought, and he quickly changed into them.

"What do you know about the terrorist group, Avalanche?" Cloud demanded.

"Nothing!" The Don exclaimed, now drenched in a nervous sweat, "I only know what everyone else does, what they tell us on the news!"

"Don't lie to me you sick bastard! Tell me what you know!"

The Don began to stammer incoherently, but when Cloud took a menacing step forward, his fists bared, he began to talk.

"I-I-I just found out where the man with the gun arm was. That's what they ordered me to do."

"Who did?" Cloud asked him.

The Don hesitated and Cloud took another step towards him.

"It was Heidegger of Shinra Inc." he practically screamed, "He's the head of Public Safety Maintenance."

Cloud was taken aback; it seemed Shinra were finally employing the big boys to deal with Avalanche. "What are they going to do?"

"They want to stomp them out, literally, they're going to destroy the pillar that holds up the plate of Upper Midgar directly above the Sector 7 slums!"

"What?" Cloud couldn't believe it, "But that will kill thousands!"

Don Corneo laughed. "Do you think the Shinra cares? They'll pin the whole thing on Avalanche, claim it was another attack on Shinra like the reactor bombings."

Cloud had heard enough, he needed to find Tifa and Aeris and get to Sector 7 before it was too late. The girls could deal with the evacuation while Cloud would head for the pillar. Who knows, he might even be able to prevent this massacre from even taking place.

Slamming through the locked door and back towards the hallway, he could just hear the Don shouting after him, "What about me-?" But Cloud didn't care; Corneo could rot there as far as he was concerned.

Running down the stairway he noticed the old man lay slumped on the floor below him, and the sounds of a fight were coming loud and clear from outside the front door. He opened it just in time to see Tifa land a final punch to one of the guards who had previously let them in the mansion, the other already lay unconscious in the doorway.

"Cloud!" Aeris panted.

"We have to get to Sector 7 now! Lives are at stake!"

And so they ran as fast as they could through Wall Market, stopping very briefly at the dress store to pick up Cloud's clothes and of course, his trusty Braver.

"What's going on?" Tifa demanded as they arrived at the gates to Sector 7. It was still unharmed which was something, Cloud thought.

He didn't respond for a moment but knew he couldn't lie to her. "Shinra are planning to destroy the pillar that holds up the city above Sector 7."

"But that means-" Tifa couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence, but it didn't matter, Cloud did it for her.

"Yes, everyone will die."


End file.
